Talents

• Mutilate PvP
• Shadow Dance PvP
• Combat PvE
• Mutilate PvE
• HAT PvE

Glyphs

Rogue blogs

• Rogue-Rogue
• One Rogue's Journey
• Forever a Noob
• Slice and Dice
• And Two Rogues
• The Rogue Dealer

Rogue resources

• Rogue class forum (US)
• Rogue class forum (EU)
• Rogue forum at Elitist Jerks
• Rogues on WoWWiki

Rogue addons

Rogue guides

Overall guides

• Guide to starting a rogue
• Rogue tactics guide
• The Ultimate rogue guide v.1.2.2

What you need to know

• How to help your tank
• Talents and specs: a guide to rogue builds
• Rogue AddOns
• Rogue consumables guide: Onslaughter Elixir, etc.
• Rogue macros
• Rogue quests
• Poisons guide
• Lockpicking guide
• A guide to stealth runs
• Rogue PvP strategy
• Rogue quests guide

Rogue loot

• Shadowpanther -- awesome gear charts & other resources (daggers, swords, maces, fists, all weapons, armor)
• Rogue gems guide
• Rogue loot by dungeon
• Rogue Tier 6 stats

NPCs

• Trainer locations
• Reagent vendor locations: shady dealers

Rogue PvP

• strategy

Rogue blogs

• A dagger in the shadows
• Fazhira's rogue blog
• Psyae's WoW et cetera

Rogue sites

 

Table of contents

• Rolling and levelling a rogue
• Playing the rogue class
• Gear and enchants
• Specs and talents
• Raiding as a rogue
• Endgame as a rogue

Rolling and leveling a rogue

• What to think about before rolling a rogue
  Before you even get to the character screen and start playing with customization, the first thing you want to ask yourself is what your Rogue intentions are. Do you want to PvP heavily, or are you interested in PvE only content? Mix of both? From there, you also should ask if you expect to be soloing a great deal, grouping or even raiding. Having at least a vague idea of what your intentions are from the word go can save you a lot of frustration later on.
• What kind of weapons should I use as a rogue?
  So you've decided to become a rogue. Roaming invisible through the darkness, lashing out in fury with your blades, the bane of casters in PVP, the most sustainable DPS in PVE, the most mispelled class name of all. You've picked your race, entered the game, rerolled your race because you noticed your stealth animations sucked, and finally started leveling. Then one day while you're grinding in Darkshore or running through Wailing Caverns, a nice weapon drops, and you finally have to face the question that all rogues must answer someday -- what kind of weapons do I want to use?
• Leveling a rogue: levels 1-20
  Tips and tricks for leveling a rogue from levels 1 to 20.
• Leveling a rogue: levels 21-40
  Tips and tricks for leveling a rogue from levels 21 to 40.
• The poison quest primer
  One of the most common complaints I hear from up and coming rogues is how difficult the level 20 poison quests can be. For those of you who have already done the quest, I'm sure you still remember how tricky it was. The "easy way out" is to get some help from your high-level friends, but for those who are stubborn (much like I am) and are determined to test your Rogue skills by doing the level 20 Rogue Poison quest solo, I will share the secrets of Doing This Quest The Hard Way. To me, it's much more fun that way, and is in keeping with the sneaky spirit of the class.

Playing the rogue class

• All about combo points and finishing moves
  One of the biggest challenges for new rogues is figuring out the combo points/finishing move system. Without an understanding of finishing moves, your target will die with five combo points on him and you will curse yourself for ever getting involved in this soul-sucking game.
• How to be evil
  We are rogues -- one of the two least ethical classes in WoW, along with those demon-loving warlocks. For us to be effective in WoW, we have to be sneaky, deceptive, and just plain evil. But how can those good-natured rogues among us find ways to be bad? Sure, we can gank, but in the end, ganking is just an artless exercise of brute force. And ninjaing is just tired and outdated. Real evil/insanity requires a bit more creativity. Read on for more tips on how to become deliciously evil and live up to our class heritage.
• How not to be seen
  Here's the thing about world PVP as a rogue: as long as you're invisible, you're fine -- but if you get caught out in the open, prepare to get pyroblasted into eternity. Other classes have huge swords, the light of the gods, demonic powers, endless channels of arcane magic, angry animal companions, and the powers of nature itself. We've got, what, two measly daggers? No wonder we need to hide. So this week, Encrypted Text will present some tips -- both physical and psychological -- on how not to be detected when in stealth.
• Best faction grinds for rogues
  There are lots of decent reputation rewards available out there, mostly for newly 70 rogues. So what are the best factions for rogues to grind?
• Best professions for rogues at endgame
  It's a good idea to pick up a crafting profession in WoW, just for the perks. (Unless you want to be one of those ultra-capitalists who take two gathering professions.) We've covered this in general terms before, but today we're going to focus on the crafting profession-specific BOP items and abilities that can really help out rogues in the end-game.
• Lockpicking 101
  I'll be going over some lockpicking basics. For those of you who are higher up, I'll also include a special tip to make some extra cash just before you need to buy your epic land mount and head into Outland. (Or for those of you who like to farm old content for cash and prizes, but may not have known about this.)
• The poison quest primer
  One of the most common complaints I hear from up and coming rogues is how difficult the level 20 poison quests can be. For those of you who have already done the quest, I'm sure you still remember how tricky it was. The "easy way out" is to get some help from your high-level friends, but for those who are stubborn (much like I am) and are determined to test your Rogue skills by doing the level 20 Rogue Poison quest solo, I will share the secrets of Doing This Quest The Hard Way. To me, it's much more fun that way, and is in keeping with the sneaky spirit of the class.
• The Lazy Alt's ten must-do Outland quests
  Sometimes, in all the drama of raiding and arenas and new patch days, we forget that not all rogues are 70 and geared out the watoozle. With the myriad number of quests out there for levelers, it can be hard sometimes to figure out which ones for alts to focus on. Will skipping this quest leave me out of a fantastic chain quest reward, or just save me hours of searching through fel droppings? In the spirit of helping our newbie brothers and sisters, Encrypted Text presents the top ten must-do Outland quests for rogues, with their corresponding rewards and tips to help you through them.
• 5 reasons to level lockpicking to 350
  "As an emergency service to the rogue community, Roguetastic presents Five Reasons To Level Lockpicking To 350."
• Top 5 reasons all rogues should pickpocket
  "There are apparently quite a few Rogues out there who don't bother with pilfering for goodies, leaving a great many pockets un-picked. This is a real shame, considering the misbegotten pocket wealth that is a due right of the Rogue class."

Gear and enchants

• Most valuable item procs for raiding rogues
  Most raiding rogues I know tend to look for pure, solid stats on their weaponry. Agility, stamina, AP, crit and hit -- these are the backbone of the rogue arsenal. Procs can be less than ideal, given their unreliable nature and spiky DPS increase. But there are some procced abilities that stand out above the others. Procs that are frequent enough or major enough to turn the tide in boss fights, destroy your enemies in PVP, or just look really cool and flashy on your weapons. Read on to discover which Burning Crusade procs to use and which procs to lose.
• Ten great rogue trinkets
  There are two blues disrupting my sea of adequate purples -- I have yet to replace either of my trinkets. And when I talk to other rogues, many of them have the same problem. The truly good epic trinkets for rogues are hard to find or have many competing rogues after them, and many of the other trinkets are just ... meh. So to help out my fellow rogues, I'm posting a guide to some of the best max-level trinkets (as rated by their power and their ease of attainability.)
• Enchanting your gear, part 1
  So your rogue has finally hit 70, you've gotten some decent blue gear, and you're preparing to raid, PVP, or do whatever else your little heart desires. Then one day, your guild leader, class leader, or some random jerk on the forums calls you out. Sure, you've got nice gear, but you've done nothing to improve it! No expensive enchants, no gems, no leg armor, no shiny little items from various professions. Today we'll cover what your friendly neighborhood enchanter can do for your gear.
• Enchanting your gear as a rogue, part 2
  Post-BC, enchanters aren't the only gear-enhancers in the game. Leatherworkers can make armor kits and leg armor that can "enchant" gear that could previously only be enhanced by those stupid ZG enchants that drove everyone nuts. The Aldors and the Scryers are engaged in a constant war over what you put on your shoulders, and many places are offering relatively inexpensive head glyphs. And, of course, the jewelcrafters have a multitude of lovely gems to socket your stuff. So rogues, if you're ready to squeeze the most out of your gear, head onward to glory!

Specs and talents

• Build Shop: Rogue 16/3/42
  This week, we're going to examine a Rogue build. Subtlety has long been labeled as a Rogue's "utility" tree, but there are so many goodies in there... talents that buff your attack power, your agility, improvements to stealth -- the list just goes on.
• Build Shop: Rogue 41/20/0
  Last time we talked rogues in this column it was all about the Subtlety tree. Well, this time we're going into a heavy Assassination / Combat build, known to some as "Combat Mutilate." Unlike builds that incorporate talents from the Subtlety tree to go along with Mutilate, this build is aimed at rogues who want a competitive PvE build that doesn't suck the fun (and the life) out of you like some other PvE-centric builds.
• Build Shop: Rogue 19/42/0
  Today we're talking about why Combat is the superior tree for PvE in many cases. Although there are many different types of Combat builds (Mace Sword, Daggers, Fist, etc) these days, I'm going to focus on Combat swords (19/42/0). This is a build that doesn't rely on positioning like Combat Daggers or Mutilate, making it great for fights with a lot of movement. This is also a build which can really crank out the damage with the right weapons and gear. I feel that this is one of the finest and most effective DPS builds in the game -- read on to find out why.

Raiding as a rogue

• How to lrn2raid: an introduction
  You've made a rogue, leveled it to 70, and have managed to finagle yourself a rogue spot in a raiding guild, which in itself may have required bribes/blackmail/sexual favors. Now you're standing in front of Kara, Gruul's Lair or SSC, and you suddenly realize: I have no clue what I am doing. Like every other class, the rogue raid game at 70 is dramatically different from how you played when leveling. You can't expect to jump right into the raid and top the damage meters. Young padawan, you must learn to raid. And we are here to help.
• Raiding as a Rogue, Part I
  This week on Encrypted Text is the first part in a small mini-series of articles that should serve as a guide for any up and coming rogues looking to start raiding. We will cover a few of the more raid-friendly specs, talk about their strengths and weaknesses, the hit and expertise caps, and the type of gear you should be looking for.
• Raiding as a Rogue, Part II
  Today, one of the things we're talking about is the Expertise cap -- the information is there so that you can make good decisions regarding your gear. Don't just run out and start stacking Hit and Expertise and leave your other stats to twist in the wind.
• Advanced raiding, AEP and the Rogue DPS Spreadsheet
  There are a lot of factors that go into balancing your rogue's stats. Agility, attack power, hit, crit, strength, weapon skill, and haste rating all increase your DPS, your most important contribution to the raid, while stamina, dodge, and to some degree resilience affect your survivability. All these factors make it somewhat difficult to figure out whether or not a piece of gear is an upgrade. Will losing this hit rating be worth gaining this attack power? How exactly will increased agility affect my DPS? And does dodge ever really matter?

Endgame as a rogue

• Best faction grinds for rogues
  There are lots of decent reputation rewards available out there, mostly for newly 70 rogues. So what are the best factions for rogues to grind?
• Best professions for rogues at endgame
  It's a good idea to pick up a crafting profession in WoW, just for the perks. (Unless you want to be one of those ultra-capitalists who take two gathering professions.) We've covered this in general terms before, but today we're going to focus on the crafting profession-specific BOP items and abilities that can really help out rogues in the end-game.
• Most valuable item procs for raiding rogues
  Most raiding rogues I know tend to look for pure, solid stats on their weaponry. Agility, stamina, AP, crit and hit -- these are the backbone of the rogue arsenal. Procs can be less than ideal, given their unreliable nature and spiky DPS increase. But there are some procced abilities that stand out above the others. Procs that are frequent enough or major enough to turn the tide in boss fights, destroy your enemies in PVP, or just look really cool and flashy on your weapons. Read on to discover which Burning Crusade procs to use and which procs to lose.
• Ten great rogue trinkets
  There are two blues disrupting my sea of adequate purples -- I have yet to replace either of my trinkets. And when I talk to other rogues, many of them have the same problem. The truly good epic trinkets for rogues are hard to find or have many competing rogues after them, and many of the other trinkets are just ... meh. So to help out my fellow rogues, I'm posting a guide to some of the best max-level trinkets (as rated by their power and their ease of attainability.)
• See also: Raiding as a rogue
• See also: Specs and talents

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